POLITICIANS AND DECEPTIONS
Posted on March 14th, 2016
By Dr. Tilak S. Fernando
An amazing story of the former British Energy Minister Chris Huhne has been exposed to the world by the Western media for lying and getting an eight month jail sentence by the Southwark Crown Court in London last week.
This coincides with a controversial issue surrounding ‘lying’ by the Minister of Megapolis and Western Development Champika Ranawaka in Sri Lanka after getting involved in a ‘hit and run’ allegation. More and more information and eyewitness reports going viral in all the possible directions have led to a full scale police investigation, the latest being the Mirihana Superintendent of Police summoning the eye witnesses to the scene of the accident.
One of his own government ministerial colleagues, the Acting State Minister for International Trade, has been quoted in the press as commenting: ” If evidence proves his involvement, Champika will be arrested as law in the land is applicable to all.”
Convicted for speeding
The former British Energy Minister was convicted for speeding, where he could have ended up being prosecuted, heavily fined (with penalty points added to his licence) and/or got his driving licence cancelled for committing the same offence for the second time. To get out of such a legal mess he had persuaded his ‘then-wife’ Vicky Pryce to admit to the Police as the driver at the time of committing the speeding offence. Vicky Pryce accepted the charge and absorbed penalty points on her licence for her husband’s speeding offence in 2003.
Political hocus-pocus
This kind of behaviour by some of the politicians, wherever they may be, appears to be very common, as most of them do not seem to have a backbone to come clean and face the music after any misdemeanor, but chicken out due to fear or cowardice. In such unfortunate circumstances either an innocent driver or a poor employee becomes a guineapig resulting the innocent man’s family to endure the shock and suffering by going through the ordeal while the master escapes strategically with suitable alibis.
The British politicians case is a clear-cut example where his ‘former-wife’ had come to his rescue and saved his skin from dishonour and public disgrace. By the same token it needs to be highlighted how on various occasions even Prince Charles and the late Princess Diana had been stopped by UK police and charged for over speeding, but they have always humbly admitted their mistake and given their credentials to the Police. In turn the Police executed their unbiased duty, finally ending up in Court hearings.
Fine paid
When summons arrived at Buckingham Palace, a representative from the Royal Household has represented the victims at Courts and paid the appropriate fine as in the case of an ordinary citizen’s procedure.
This is British justice at its height. The Sri Lankan minister’s flat refusal to show his Identity to the two witnesses, once they blocked the fleeing jeep after a marathon chase, blocking it and demanded to identify the driver, makes one smell a rat, or could it be put down to downright smugness?
Humiliation
The British politician’s suppressed guilty conscience for two years which managed to hoodwink the Police and authorities about his crime resurfaced in an amazing development once again giving rise to a sensational scandal on his personal life too, which has been exposed worldwide. The case was taken up once gain at Southwark Crown Court in London recently.
It started with a humiliating exposure at the second trial with his marriage to Vicky Pryce in 1984, followed by a spiteful separation in June 2010 when Chris Huhne sought solace, contentment and gratification out of his mistress and Media Adviser, Carina Tringham, and walked out of his legal wife.
After the breakdown of her marriage, and as an act of vendetta, Vicky Pryce decided to leak out details of Chris Huhne’s deception to a journalist in 2011, which finally led to the resumption of a new Police investigation and a re-trial.
Pleading guilty
At the new trial, the prosecution alleged that Huhne had asked Pryce to accept the responsibility and the fault for his speeding with the fear of his losing his driving licence as he had been prosecuted before. It was certain that on the second occasion he was sure to lose his licence for the ‘repeated offence.’
After two years of continuous denials, former energy secretary Chris Huhne had to plead guilty finally to perverting the course of justice, stating that he “persuaded his then-wife, Vicky Pryce, to accept penalty points on her licence for his own speeding offense in 2003.”
Added to such evidence, SMS conversations between Chris Huhne and his youngest son Peter produced before the Magistrate said it all.
Pressure
Young Peter to his father Chris Huhne: “We all know that you were driving and you put pressure on mum. Accept it or face the consequences. You’ve told me that was the case. Or will this be another lie?”
Chris Huhne to Peter: “I have no intention of sending Mum to Holloway Prison for three months- Dad.”
Peter to his father: “Are you going to accept your responsibility or do I have to contact the police and tell them what you told me?”
On Christmas Day 2011, Chris Huhne sent a text to his son Peter saying “Happy Christmas. Love you, Dad.” Peter replied: “Well I hate you, so f*** off.”
Pricking conscience
Chris Huhne was sentenced to eight month’s jail to perverting the course of justice, saying he persuaded his then-wife, Vicky Pryce to accept penalty points on her licence for his own speeding offense in 2003.
Vicky Pryce denied the charges against her, citing marital coercion in defence but she was also convicted at the retrial, resulting in the eight-month jail sentence for accepting penalty points.
So Chris Huhne has now joined a small but notorious band of former UK Cabinet Ministers who have served time in government and in Jail. In Sri Lanka people are eagerly waiting to see justice prevailing in Minister Champika’s “hit and run case.”
“Neither in the sky, nor deep in the ocean, nor in mountain cave, nor anywhere, can a man be free from the evil he has done.” – Dhamma Pada Verse 127
March 15th, 2016 at 5:44 pm
Tilak
Our Sri Lankan politicians are scoundrels and we need the British to put the country right.They use the main religion to cover their ills and wear the national amude to justify their Dravidian roots. No wonder likes of VP wants to claim the country for themselves.
These politicians should be locked up but it will never happen with the corrupt judicial industry and others who are suppose to uphold the law.
Only option is to get the colonial types to come back and put thing right. Many African business people and Academics I meet says what I believe. They are impressed by the day to day life of UK.They want UK life style and culture in their countries. But I doubt any one in the right mind wants to venture out there.
March 15th, 2016 at 8:47 pm
Dr. Tilak,
This is not a case of ‘hit and run’. It is quite clear that the guy with a motor bike of 1000cc (which I understand is not legally allowed to run on SL roads) came fast from behind (or sideway) and hit Champika’s vehicle. And he, for the fear of being lynched, ran away. It has been the fear that made him to run away from the statement of the two youths. Perhaps he was not under the influence of alcohol as otherwise the guys would have noticed it. But his mistake was not taking the vehicle to the police station straight away.
SL is not UK and our democracy and even the judicial system is quite different the way it is being practiced; only god knows how this will end up.
March 15th, 2016 at 9:19 pm
Tilak,
“Neither in the sky, nor deep in the ocean, nor in mountain cave, nor anywhere, can a man be free from the evil he has done.” – Dhamma Pada Verse 127
This is Buddhas’ words. You have be very careful using it.
From your relentless attack on the Minister it is clear to me that you were there when the accident occurred and you same the minister’s face too.
I assume this from your writing because you appeared to be 100% sure.
But the minister said he was not even in the vehicle.
Nevertheless you are not a politician and I take your word than his.
Aloy,
Tilak explained elsewhere that the Minister was driving at “rocket speed” along a cross road Janadhipathi Vidyalaya Mawatha and stooped the vehicle abruptly on Kotte bound lanes of the Sri Jayawardanepura Mawatha.
So, it is the youth who HIT Minister not the Minister HIT the youth.
With regard to RUN, youth obviously could not run the Minster RAN.
But this is possible , if the motor cycle came at a considerable speed, so that it could not turn 2 feet to avoid hitting the 4WD.
Also stopping on the man road is also wrong.
Anyway , you are right. No HIT AND RUN here.
Also no “rocket speed”. Both are exaggerations. Exaggerations are also Evil.
“Neither in the sky, nor deep in the ocean, nor in mountain cave, nor anywhere, can a man be free from the evil he has done.”
March 15th, 2016 at 9:22 pm
Couple of typos. “You have be ..” – should be “you have to be”
“you same the minister’s ..” should be You saw
March 15th, 2016 at 10:20 pm
We should keep in mind that it was JHU led by Ven. Athureliye and Champika that forced the then government of MR to to take on LTTE and fight to a finished thus eliminating them and ending a 30yr long war. Everybody makes mistakes in this world. In this case the mistake was not going to Police station immediately. To my mind not a grave offence.
March 15th, 2016 at 10:22 pm
Typo: “…. fight to a finish”
March 17th, 2016 at 10:35 am
All the evidence will come out now that the courts have instructed the police to produce telephone conversations, cctv strips etc.
What the eye witness has said was that the jeep came fast from a side road and without stopping came to the main road straightaway, and having spotted the motor bike approaching on the main road he braked suddenly on the main road when the motor cycle could not stop but hit. The problem here is that any human being will see to what extent the damage is and if wounded then seek help to assist the victim to be sent to the nearest hospital. In this case what has happened, according to the eye witnesses is that the minister went without stopping the jeep after the accident, which is against the law in Sri Lanka. Furthermore two youths who saw this gave a chase after the jeep, blocked the vehicle and was about to thrash the driver at which point only the driver has identified himself and said, I am so and so, its my fault and lets go to the Borella police. The young guys were scared to go with him and later it was found that the entry had been lodged at Welikada police and not on the official record book but on a private note book. Then comes later his driver as the person who was at the wheel at the time of accident. Well ! Well !! Well!! its only in Sri Lanka this kind of thing can take place.